Sunday, February 13, 2011

Leek and Potato Pizza

Even though I can't convince Rob and Mrs P that pizza can contain various toppings and ingredients - I'm still calling this pizza. I guess I'm just a rebel like that.

I bought myself the Pioneer Woman cookbook last year and lately I've been perusing my old cookbooks for some new ideas. I happened upon this recipe for leek and potato pizza - the planets were aligned and I already had most of the ingredients. I had already planned to make pizza anyway, so the dough was in the process of rising when I started plotting my game plan.

My mandolin slicer made short work of the yukons. I set the depth for a thin slice - I'll admit, I was a little skeptical that the potatoes would actually cook enough to become tender.

This cubed pancetta is one of my new favorite ingredients. I keep it in the freezer and simply shake out as much as I need. It has a great flavor and since the cubes are small, it's the perfect flavor enhancer without being overpowering. I sauteed the pancetta in my iron skillet (with about a teaspoon of butter) until just about crisped.

I sliced the leeks and sauteed them in the skillet with the pancetta - cooking long enough so the leeks were tender and the pancetta was fully crisped.

I rolled my pizza dough very thinly after sprinkling my pizza stone with cornmeal. I overlapped the potato slices and sprinkled kosher salt over them.

I then layered the remainder of the toppings.

I placed slices of brie and shredded parmesan on the leeks and pancetta as the final touch.

The result was delicious. The potatoes were perfectly tender. The brie melted seamlessly and I couldn't even discern the unique flavor - the pizza was salty, crunchy, rich, and perfectly satisfying.

Pizza really is one of our favorite meals - I never would have thought to put potato slices on my pizza - or even use brie for that matter - but it made the perfect Friday night meal. And, don't worry, Mrs P, I made Rob and the kids a "pizza" with red sauce and white cheese. This "pizza" was all mine - until we had friends stop by - and they inhaled the rest of it!

Here is a link to the original recipe, if you want to take a peek. The Pioneer Woman actually only has the recipe published in her cookbook (not on her blog). With her permission, Tartelette has reprinted the recipe.